Updated November 2026 We have rewritten this guide to the Haft Chenar museum with corrected details on its location, history and name.
The Wildlife and Natural Monuments Museum, usually called the Haft Chenar Museum, is a natural history museum in the old Beryanak neighbourhood of south-west Tehran. Set in a historic Qajar-era building with a garden, it has one of the city’s best collections of taxidermy animals alongside an aquarium, live reptiles and geological displays, and it makes an easy, rewarding half-day out, especially with children.
The museum sits on Qazvin Street, just north of Beryanak Square and close to the Navab Expressway. Its name means “seven plane trees”, after the ancient chenar trees that once gave this corner of the city its identity. The building has had a varied life: it was built in the late Qajar period as a power station, later became a sock factory, and after a long restoration opened as a museum in 1997. Its architecture mixes traditional Iranian brickwork with European touches typical of the era, and the building is worth a look in its own right.
Inside, the collection is arranged in several sections:
- Taxidermy halls with large mammals such as lions, tigers, bears and zebras, as well as many of Iran’s native species.
- Birds, from birds of prey to waterfowl.
- An aquarium with freshwater and marine fish, including species that are hard to see anywhere else in Tehran.
- Reptiles and invertebrates, both live and preserved.
- Geology and natural phenomena, with rock and mineral specimens and a recreated cave.
- A taxidermy workshop, which gives a glimpse of how the exhibits are prepared.
The grounds also have a courtyard where some live animals are shown, a small library, a coffee shop and a traditional teahouse, so it is easy to linger after you have seen the displays.
Do not confuse Haft Chenar with the Darabad Nature and Wildlife Museum, which is in the far north of the city near the mountains. Darabad is the larger and better-known of the two, but Haft Chenar is more central for anyone staying downtown or in the west of Tehran, and its historic building gives it a different atmosphere.
A few practical tips:
- The museum usually opens in morning and late-afternoon sessions with a break in the middle of the day, so check current times locally before you set off.
- Entry is inexpensive; foreigners may pay a higher rate than Iranians. See our Iran price trackers for a sense of current costs.
- Weekends and school holidays are busy with families; weekday mornings are calmer.
- The easiest way to get there is by taxi or ride-hailing app: ask for “Muzeh-ye Haft Chenar, Beryanak”.
For more photos and background, see our separate guide to the Haft Chenar Nature and Wildlife Museum.
